American Go E-Journal » Meng Tailing

On August 28, Meng Tailing 6P and Tuo Jiaxi 3P met in the final of China’s 4th Quzhou Lanke Cup. Despite a higher ranking, Meng probably entered the final as the underdog, because Tuo recently won the CITIC Bank Cup (previously the CCTV Cup – in July 2012). The game featured some unusual mimicry in the opening, where black and white repeatedly played tenuki (didn’t respond locally) and created identical strongholds across the board from one another. In the end, the result hinged on a decisive ko fight. Tuo won the ko, but lost the game after Meng found adequate compensation elsewhere. Meng Tailing takes home his first domestic Chinese title and 500,000 Chinese RMB (about $80,000).